Reading, Pa. — Area residents with medicines they’d like to get rid of can do so Saturday, March 16th from 10 AM to 2 PM in the Main Lobby of Penn State Health St. Joseph’s Bern Township campus during a take back event. The address is 2500 Bernville Road, Reading.
The event is part of the hospital’s numerous activities for National Patient Safety Week.
St. Joseph Director of Security, Christopher Neidert, recommends the public review the contents of their home medicine cabinets annually and disposes of any unused or expired medications. The drug take back program allows medications to be safety disposed.
Neidert says no illegal substances or needles or used syringes will be accepted. He says all participants should remove identifying information on prescription medicines to make it unreadable in order to protect both identity and the privacy of personal health information.
Neidert also notes:
- Unused or expired prescription medications are a public safety issue, leading to accidental poisoning, overdose, and abuse.
- Pharmaceutical drugs can be just as dangerous as street drugs when taken without a prescription or a doctor’s supervision.
- The non-medical use of prescription drugs ranks second only to marijuana as the most common form of drug abuse in America.
- The majority of teenagers abusing prescription drugs get them from family and friends — and the home medicine cabinet.
- Unused prescription drugs thrown in the trash can be retrieved and abused or illegally sold.
- Unused drugs that are flushed contaminate the water supply. Proper disposal of unused drugs saves lives and protects the environment.
